Vending apparatus.



PATENTED APR. 19, 1904.

R. E. PAYNE. VENDING APPARATUS.

APPLICATION FILED JUNE 29. 1903.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

N0 MODEL.

Witnesses 4% Attorney PATENTED APR. 19, 1904.

R. E. PAYNE. VENDING APPARATUS. APPLICATION FILED JUNE 29, 1903.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

N0 MODEL.

MUM

Witnesses lnventol Attorney UNTTED STATES Patented April 19, 1904.

PATENT OFFICE. A

ROBERT E. PAYNE, OF NEW YORK, N. Y.

VENDING APPARATUS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 757,956, dated April 19, 1904.

Application filed June 29, 1903- To all whom, it may concern:

Be it known that I, ROBERT E. PAYNE, a citizen of the United States,residing at New York, in the county of New York and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Vending Apparatus; and I do declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

This invention relates to vending apparatus, and has for its object to provide an apparatus which will vend one or more articles or packages at a time for a proper coin.

A further object is to provide simple and efficient means for operating the feed device and for preventing the discharge of goods upon the insertion of an improper coin, token, or disk of tin or other light metal.

A still further object is to provide a vending device which is simple, cheap, and effective and which will occupy a minimum amount of space.

With these and other objects in view the invention consists of certain novel features of construction, combination, and arrangement of parts, as will be more fully described, and particularly pointed out in the appended claims, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is a perspective view of a vending apparatus embodying my invention. Fig. 2 is a longitudinal section of the same. Figs. 3, 4, and 5 are cross-sections on lines 3 3, 4 4, and 5 5 of Fig. 2. Fig. 6 is an endview of the feed device, and Fig. 7 is an inner elevational view of one of the end standards.

1 in the drawings designates a base, from which rise standards 2 and 3, secured to the base by screws or other suitable fastening devices 4. Above the base is a sheet-metal plate 5, whose end or side edges 6 fit within grooves 6 in the standards. This plate has a vertical rear wall '7 and is stiffened at its front edge by a bead or stiffening-strip 8, thus forming a chamber or compartment between the base and plate for the reception of a money-drawer 9, Whose front wall 10 is adapted to abut against said strip 8 and to be locked thereto Serial No. 163,588- (No model.)

in closed position by any approved type of lock or fastening device.

Arranged above the plate 5 and between the standards 2 and 3 is a casing 11, comprising a strip of sheet metal bent into nearly cylindrical form, the circular contour being broken at the lowermost point by the downward bending of the edges of the strip to provide guide-flanges 12, forming between them a discharg eoutlet 12, through which the goods are fed out onto the shelf or plate 5. These flanges 12 are of less length than the cylinder and at one end terminate in juxta: position to a slot 13, formed in the casing above a corresponding slot 14 in the plate 5, the said two slots being connected bya threesided sheet-metal strip 15, soldered or otherwise secured to said casing and plate and forming a chute or passage 16 for the discharge of the coin from the lowermost coinpocket in the feed device hereinafter described to the money-drawer 9. The edges of the casing and coin chute strip fit within grooves 6 in the standards, by which when the standards are fastened to the base they are retained in position. This specific construction of the frame and casing is not essential, but may be varied at willto suit different ideas or conditions. The standard 3 is formed with an opening to receive a door or head 17, giving access to the casing 11 for replenishing the feed device. This door or head may be held locked by any preferred kind of lock or fastening. The casing 11 is provided at top with a coin slot or inlet 18, located adjacent to the standard 2.

A shaft 19 extends longitudinally within the casing 11 and is mounted at its opposite ends in asleeve 20, journaled in the standard 2, and a bearing 21, disposed upon the standard 3. Loosely mounted on this shaft is a feed device consisting of fixedly-related goods-holding and coin-receiving cylinders 22 and 23, held spaced by a sheet-metal disk or partition 24 and connected by suitable fastening means. The

cylinder 22 is provided with two sets of longitudinal radial pockets 25 and 26. The pockets 25 are of some depth and extend the full length of the cylinder and open through it at the end opposite the cylinder 23, as shown, and are designed to hold chewing-gum or other goods put up in fiat boxes or packages. The pockets 26, on the other hand, extend only about one-half the length of the cylinder namely, between the center of the cylinder and the end thereof contiguous to the standard 3*and are comparatively shallow and semicircular in form, so as to-hold a bottle or cylindrical package, the said pockets being alternately arranged around the circumference of the cylinder and at such distance from each other that one pocket 25 and a contiguous pocket 26 will simultaneously register with the outlet, so as to discharge their contents at one and the same time through the outlet 12 out upon the shelf 5.

The cylinder 23 is located between the coinslot 18 and above the coin-chute 16 and is provided with an annular series of coin-pockets 27, located in longitudinal alinement with the pockets 26 and of a width and depth to receive a certain denomination of coin-say a nickel or five-cent pieceat which price one package of goods from a pocket 25 and one from a pocket 26 are to be dispensed. In order to operate the cylinder, the deposited coin must remain in the pocket 27, so as to be engaged by the cylinder-turning device hereinafter described, and in order to prevent such engagement and operation of the cylinder when a penny or slug of smaller size is inserted within a pocket 27 I provide means for guiding the penny or slug out of said pocket and discharging the same at a certain point in the path of revolution of the cylinder, To this end the cylinder 22 is provided with a fourth series of pockets 28 between the disk 24 and pockets 26, which pockets .28 are in communication with the pockets 27 through openings 29 in said disk 24. The lower walls of the pockets 27 are inclined, as shown at 27, toward these openings 29, so as to cause the deposited coins to roll toward the pockets 28. The openings 28 are too small to allow a nickel to pass, but will permit any smaller coin, token, or slug to pass out of the pockets 27 and into the pockets 28, so as to be out of the way of the cylinder-turning device. The slug or penny will remain in the pocket 28 until said pocket reaches the lowest point in its path of revolution, when the slug or coin will drop through the chute16 into the moneydrawer or may be discharged through an independent outlet to the exterior of the machine. For convenience in forming the pockets 28 the cylinder may be grooved clear through to the pockets 26 and pins or stops 30 inserted at the junctions of these pocketsto separate them from each other. Also, if desired, the pockets 28 may be used to hold and dispense a third class of goods or packages, making three packages of different kinds or grades of goods vended at each operation of the machine for a prescribed coin. It will be seen that upon detaching the door or head 17 the pockets 25 and 26 may be filled without withdrawing the feed device from the casing 11.

The coin-receiving cylinder 23 is formed in its outer end with a groove 31. intersecting the coin-pockets 28, and this groovereceives a finger 32, carried by an arm or lever 33, connected to the sleeve 20, which is provided at its outer end upon the outer side of the head 2 with a knob 34:, by which it may be operated. The finger 32 engages the coins in the pockets 28, and thus transmits motion to the feed device. This motion is limited to the extent of one pocket by stops 35 35, against which the arm 33 abuts at the extremes of its movement. The said arm 33 carries a shield 33,which closes the coin-slot 18 except when the feed device is in position and condition for operation, and is retracted by a spring 36. In order to hold the feed device against casual movement, the cylinder 23 is provided with a ratchet-toothed ring 37, which is engaged by a pawl or dog 38, carried by a pawl-arm 39, which is controlled by a spring 4E0, which permits outward movement of the pawl to allow the feed device to turn and'normally holds the pawlin locking engagement with the ring 37 to prevent the cylinder from slipping around on its shaft and bringing the coin-pocket next to be used out of register with the coin-slot 18.

In operation the customer deposits the proper coin in the slot 18, when it drops into the registering pocket 28, and then turns the knob'34 to cause the finger 32 to engage the coin and rotate the feed device, whereupon the contents of one of the pockets 25 and a contiguous pocket 26 will be discharged in an ob-v vious manner. The coins remain in the poclp ets 28 until said pockets aline in turn with the chute 16, when they drop into the mon y drawer.

It will be observed that by changing the construction of the goods-holding cylinder one or more packages may be made to deliver at the same time without altering the coin-operating device.

From the foregoing description, taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, the construction and operation of the invention will be readily understood without requir ing a more extended explanation.

Various changes in the form, proportion, and the minor details of construction may be resorted to without departing from the principle or sacrificing any of the advantages of this invention. 7

Having thus fully described my invention, what I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. In a coin-controlled vending apparatus, the combination of a casing having a coin-inlet and a goods-outlet, a feed device located therein and comprising two cylinders fixedly related, one of said cylinders having goods-pockets and receiving-pockets and the other cylinder having coin-pockets provided with bottoms inclined toward said receiving-pockets, a groove or recess being formed in the outer end of the latter cylinder adjacent to and communicating with the coin-pockets to expose the coins therein, a partition between the cyli inders provided with openings connecting the coin-pockets with the receiving-pockets, said openings forming contracted inlets to the receiving-pockets, and a coin-engaging member projecting into said groove or recess to engage the coins in the coin-pockets to rotate the cylinder to discharge goods from the goods-pockets through the discharge-outlet, substantially as described.

2. In a coin-controlled vending apparatus, the combination of a casing having acoin-inlet and a goods-outlet, a feeding device located therein, and comprising a cylinder provided with goods-pockets, at one end with coin-pockets, and between said goods and coin pockets with receiving-pockets, said coin-pockets having bottoms inclined toward said receivingpockets, and the latter having contracted entrances to allow coins of smaller size than intended for the coin-pockets to pass into the receiving-pockets, a groove or recess formed in the end of the cylinder adjacent to and communicating with the said coin-pockets, a swinging arm carrying a coin-engaging device projecting into said groove or recess to engage the coins in the coin-pockets to rotate the cylinder. and a closure for the coin-inlet movable with said arm, substantially as set forth.

3. In a coin-controlled vending apparatus, the combination of a casing having a coin-inlet and goods-outlet, a feed device located therein, and comprising two cylinders fixedly related, said cylinders being placed end to end, and one of them being provided with goodspockets and receiving-pockets, and the other with coin-pockets provided with bottoms inclined toward said receiving-pockets, the coinpocketed cylinder having also a groove or recess communicating with the coin-pockets, a partitionbetween the cylinders provided with openings forming-contracted entrances communicating between the coin and receiving pockets, said entrances being adapted to allow a coin smaller than that intended for the coinpockets to pass into the receiving-pockets, and a coin-engaging member projecting into said groove or recess to engage the coins in the coin-pockets and rotate the feed device, substantially as shown and described.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand in presence of two subscribing witnesses.

ROBERT E. PAYNE.

Witnesses:

CHAS. EDGAR, MATH. GAHMANN. 

